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High-strength steel leaves the finishing line at ArcelorMittal's steel plant in the Flats. New steel formulas from the company have gotten so strong that ArcelorMittal will have to upgrade several pieces of equipment this summer to cut and roll the steel. Higher-strength materials are in high demand because automakers need to use them to cut the weight of vehicles.
(Thomas Ondrey/The Plain Dealer)

"It's much more stiff," said Mark Kovach, ArcelorMittal's division manager for finishing in the Flats. "It's much more ornery."

Automakers, hoping to improve fuel economy, want new steel types that are much stronger than earlier offerings. The stronger the steel, the less companies have to use and still keep cars safe. Less weight means less work for the car's engine, saving fuel over time. And if designers can shed enough weight, they can use smaller engines, further improving fuel economy.

Kovach said ArcelorMittal and other steel makers have come up with specialty formulas that meet automakers demands, but it's not easy stuff to make. The shears that Arcelor uses to cut finished steel into sheets aren't up to the challenge. And the rollers that package the sheets into tight coils for delivery can't handle the load either.

This summer, Arcelor plans to upgrade the shears, the rollers and other parts of the finishing line in the Flats so it will be able to deliver the new steel types to customers.

And the customers definitely want the high-tech material. With fuel-economy standards increasing over the next several years, hitting 54.5 miles a gallon by 2025, cars and trucks need to go on a massive diet.

To cut weight, analysts expect automakers to use more light-weight metals such as aluminum and magnesium than they do now. And carbon fiber, a high-tech composite material, is gaining popularity in luxury and high-performance cars.

"Carbon fiber can be 10 times stronger and have a quarter of the weight of steel," General Motors spokeswoman Rene Rashid-Merem said. But it's also extremely expensive, so car companies have to use small amounts very strategically. "You're still going to see steel as the major element. But you're going to have other materials in addition."

Improvements to engines and transmissions let car companies boost power and fuel economy while not cutting weight, but automakers say further improvements are going to be very expensive. Getting more miles per gallon without cutting weight means using more hybrids, diesel-powered cars and electric vehicles. Because of the higher costs, those fuel-efficient cars make up a small portion of auto sales.

"Higher strength grades of steels have allowed automakers to constantly increase the safety of cars without adding a lot of weight," Zuidema said. "Were it not for the improvement in strength, you would have expected the fleet to get a lot heavier."

Zaluzec added, "Our cars are safer today than they've ever been. With the newer safety requirements, not adding weight over the past decade was a major accomplishment."

Having met those safety standards, Zaluzec said Ford and other automakers now hope to use the next generation of high-strength steel to cut weights.

Working with those new steels won't simply be a challenge for the steel companies. Car companies will need to upgrade their equipment as well, he said. Stamping presses, such as the ones GM uses in Parma, may have to use more pressure to form the steel, for example.

"[New steel formulas are] more difficult to stamp and they're more difficult to trim," Zaluzec said. "We know how to address it, and working with our steel suppliers, we're finding ways to make this work."

Zuidema said it's an exciting time for the steel industry. Going as far back as the 1940s, some automotive experts had predicted that aluminum and other materials would replace steel. Instead, steel companies have improved their offerings, allowing automakers to continue using the low-cost material.

He added that with its ability to be hard or soft, light or heavy, steel can seem almost magical at times.

"Small changes in alloy content or small changes in processing, and a whole range of properties can be obtained," Zuidemasaid.

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